Without Love
by Steggy Likes Juice Boxes
Summary: Hairspray fic! The Corny Collins show is officially integrated! And everyone is celebrating with their loved ones. Except one person. CornyMaybelle
1. Lost That Lovin' Feelin'

Yeah I know I need to get going on my other fic, but this was an emergency! I've already seen Hairspray in the Theatre twice and there is no godamn fanfiction between Motormouth Maybelle and Corny Collins! (With the recent exception of the oh so wonderful Sonic Serendipity whose Jedi mind tricks seemed to have worked on me)

Was I not the only one to see it?!

I was also thinking about some Link Larkin/Corny Collins, but…let's save that for another day my dirty minded slash loving friends.

Disclaimer- I don't own Hairspray.

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* * *

"Well there you have it, the new Miss Teenage Hairspray, Inez Stubbs!" Corny signed off. 

The camera man signaled that they were officially off the air but Corny's huge and well, corny grin stayed plastered on his face. Usually the exaggerated expression dropped off his features as soon as the camera went off. But he found it was impossible to stop smiling with the vibe that was in the studio.

Tracy Turnblad and Link Larkin were embracing in the center of it all, oblivious to everyone around them.

Seaweed Stubbs and a girl, whom Corny had seen with Tracy before but couldn't recall her name, did the same. The girl looked relieved yet nervous about something.

Off stage, even Mr. and Mrs. Turnblad were sharing a moment.

Nearby, all the other teenagers were chatting excitedly to one another about the newly integrated show.

Corny then spotted Lil' Inez jumping all around and talking eagerly to the voluptuous figure of Motormouth Maybelle, who smiled gladly in return.

Ms. Maybelle…

Suddenly Corny felt very lonely.

The high spirited vibe of the room left him and the ever-present smile slowly melted off of his face. He glanced blankly around again at all the people in the room, and instead of the joy he got from it all before, he felt more negative feelings growing inside him.

He tried to ignore it and did his best to keep those feelings from showing on his visage. Why shouldn't he be happy? Velma Von Tussle was most likely fired. All the kids get to come back and dance. The show was officially integrated. It was great. It was more than great, it was wonderful, and ground-breaking and fantastic and…and…

He had no one to share it with.

With that one depressing thought Corny lost his inner battle, and frowned. He began to walk away, dropping the microphone that he forgot he had been holding.

When the mike, which was still switched on, hit the ground it made a loud 'thump' noise which echoed through the speakers. Despite the volume of the conversation in the room everyone was a little startled by the unexpected sound. Swiftly everyone's eyes fell on Corny, who didn't notice any of it as he continued making his way to the exit.

When he neared Velma she stopped arguing with Mr. Spritzer and began to bestow her anger on him. And though she yelled and screeched at him, he miraculously managed to take no notice of her. Or he did and just chose to pay her no mind. He didn't even notice that as he exited the studio, he slammed the door right in her face.

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Well that's it for now.

Don't worry it's a multi-chapter story, Corny will get some lovin'!

Read and review please!


	2. The Sounds Of Silence

Sorry the chapters are so small but that's the only way this story will ever get written.

My attention span is so short.

Oh my god, today on my way to work I saw a street sign that said 'Inez Road' I would have stolen it if my mom weren't in the car.

Disclaimer: Don't own Hairspray like I don't own that street sign.

Most of the chapters will be written in…umm…

flips through language textbook

Third person limited POV!

It will mainly switch between Corny and Maybelle.

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* * *

Maybelle didn't hear Cory's sign off because of the thunderous cheering going on all around her. The instant the camera switched off her daughter, Inez, skipped over. She was so excited. Inez was talking so rapidly, Maybelle couldn't even understand half of what she was saying.

Maybelle was pleased to see her daughter so ecstatic. Being on this show was her dream and it had finally been realized. Not everybody's dreams came true and it was a divine thing to see when someone's did.

Speaking of dreams, hadn't hers come true too? The show was integrated now. Or at least she hoped so. There was no way the higher ups at the studio could take it back, now that it had been announced to practically all of Baltimore. There would be a lot of red tape to go through, she knew that, but she preferred to live in the moment and rejoice with the rest of the cast.

She turned her attention away from her own thoughts and Inez's animated talk to look at her son. She was proud of him and that Penny girl. There wasn't a snowball's chance in hell of hiding it; the entire city of Baltimore knew they were together. She only hoped that the girl's mother took it as well as she herself had.

Of course Maybelle was all for interracial couples, but it scared her, what her son and his girlfriend would have to face when the thrill wore off and real life jumped back in and slapped them both in the face. Even with her own fiery revolutionary spirit, it just seemed different when it was her own family.

They still had a long way to go but they never would have gotten this far with out all the wonderful people in her life. She wanted to thank her entire community for risking everything and marching down to the station. And Link who had pulled Lil' Inez out on the dance floor and made her a star. She couldn't forget Mr. Turnblad who bailed them out of prison.

And she most certainly couldn't forget Mr. Collins.

It was his show, after all.

If he had really wanted to he could have tossed all of them out on their behinds; even on live television.

He could have ignored Tracy and honored Amber with the Miss Teenage Hairspray title.

But he didn't. He never would have. Maybelle knew him better than that. She didn't know him very well but…she knew him better than that. The only time they ever really talked was maybe a day or two before 'negro day,' when they had to plan and coordinate some of the performance together. She didn't even know his real name! Corny couldn't be his real name, surely nobody's parents could be that cruel? They hardly ever got past small talk, though he had complimented her many times on her magnificent singing voice.

Occasionally, yes just occasionally, they would get just the tiniest bit off track and talk about Velma.

* * *

**_Flashback_**

_"Dear lord how much makeup can one person have on their face?" Maybelle thought out loud to Corny._

_"I'm not sure. But we are talking about Madame Von Tussle, are we not?" Corny replied._

_Maybelle raised an eyebrow. "Who else?" She responded with a glance in Velma's direction._

_"Well it's just that I'm not entirely sure she counts as a person," Corny said matter-of-factly. "Even if she is in fact 'human,'" Corny did little air quotes at the word human, "as you say. She probably died years ago. And seeing as there probably wasn't a huge change in her…charming personality, nobody noticed."_

_"Even if she isn't dead, as you say," Maybelle mocked him playfully, "she could keel over at any moment. Does anybody even know how old that woman is?!"_

_Corny shook his head. "The world may never know." Then he sighed and feigned seriousness. "She does worry me sometimes, ya know? Dancing with all those kids…"_

_"And?"_

_"Well it's truly amazing she doesn't break a hip."_

_It was quite a sight to see. Not just in Baltimore, but anywhere on the planet. Two full grown adults, one black and one white, making fun of their co-worker and giggling like schoolgirls._

**_End Flashback_**

* * *

Maybelle smiled. Corny may be just a skinny little white boy, but as far as skinny little white boys went, he wasn't so bad. He made her laugh.

"Inez? Inez! Inez, child calm down!" She tried to get her eager daughter's attention.

"Yes mama?" Inez beamed.

Maybelle bent her knees a little so she was closer to Inez's height. "Why don't you go talk to your brother for a while, I've got some things to take care of," Maybelle elucidated for her kindheartedly.

"Okay!" Inez stood up on her tippie-toes and began to scan the crowd for her big brother.

Maybelle continued to smile and shook her head. Then, she too began to look for someone.

She wanted to talk with Corny about what direction the show would take now. And she wanted to thank him.

Only a few minutes ago, although it felt like ages, she had been shocked when he grabbed her hand pulled her out into the view of the cameras. Her shock was soon replaced with a wonderful feeling, a feeling she couldn't describe, and she forgot everything for a moment and sang her heart out.

She also wanted to thank him for what he did after that.

_"The Corny Collins show is now officially integrated!"_

The magic words.

With that sentence he had risked his job and his entire future career. Not many people would do that.

But when she spotted the host, soon to be co-host hopefully, she hesitated.

He was frowning.

She had, in fact, seen him frown before. It actually wasn't that long ago either. But only once, which is more than most people can say. However that one time did not bring back good memories.

* * *

**_Flashback_**

_She couldn't believe it._

_They were cancelled._

_Cancelled!_

_Velma Von Tussle was very lucky when Maybelle decided to take the high road. She could have easily knocked that skinny she-devil straight to kingdom come. But Maybelle held her head high and walked away. She didn't care where she was going as long as it was somewhere else._

_She went into the nearest room and shut the door behind her. As she leaned tiredly on the door and sighed, she could hear Velma laughing. She listened to Velma's heals clicking as she strutted off._

_Maybelle took a moment to notice that she was not actually in a room; she was on a staircase. She had never been this way before and now was as good a time to explore as any. She began to climb the stairs. With every step more rational thoughts replaced her livid murderous ones._

_What would she tell the children?_

_How would she tell the children?_

_Those were the prominent thoughts on her mind as she reached the top of the steps. She opened the door at the top and she felt a pleasant breeze blow across her face. She was on the roof. Maybelle had never been on the roof of the studio before. She had scarcely begun to venture outside when she realized she was not alone._

_Sitting down with his back leaning on a brick wall was none other than Corny Collins himself. And boy, was he a sight to see._

_He wasn't wearing his jacket and his shirt was unbuttoned revealing a thin undershirt. Maybelle had never seen him in anything less than a full suit, complete with tie. His hair, usually combed and hairsprayed flawlessly, was sticking up in a few places, as though he had been running his hands through it. The sun was setting behind him giving him a dark shadowy look._

_And even with all that, what struck her as odd was one, the disappointed lost puppy dog look on his face and two, he was smoking._

_A lot of people smoked, but she had never pictured him as one of them._

_"Well now, with a voice as smooth as yours, you wouldn't be tryin' to ruin it, now would you?" Maybelle said smartly, startling him. He jumped a little then looked up at her; surprise mixing with his downcast expression._

_"Ms. Maybelle!" He looked very unsure of himself. He ground his cigarette into the brick. "I…I would never…" Corny was stuttering and his eyes kept darting between her face and the ground. "I'm so sorry," his voice cracked._

_Their eyes locked. "I know sweetie, I know," she sat down next to him. They didn't speak anymore but they watched the sunset together._

**_End Flashback_**

* * *

And now, as he stood there with that same lost look on his face, she wondered what the cause of it could be.

She didn't flinch like everyone else did when he dropped the microphone. She didn't hear the loud disturbance. She was too focused on his expression.

Despite everyone's initial reaction, it appeared as though they had all forgotten about the incident as soon as Corny shut the door.

She would talk to him tomorrow, she decided.

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Be warned, there will probably never be a chapter this long ever again.

Review and tell me what you think, pretty please!


	3. Bad Moon Rising

Wow thanks to all my super special awesome reviewers!

I'd also like to apologize for any confusion in any parts of the first chapter. It was written and posted on a whim at four o' clock in the morning. I could have said anything.

Disclaimer: Don't own Hairspray

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As he walked the familiar path to his apartment, Corny began to return to his senses. Corny's neighborhood was all right but he had to go through some pretty iffy streets before he got there. The sun had almost finished setting and the sky was a vision of orange and purple shades. 

He slackened his pace for a moment, and then came to a stop. He closed his eyes and smacked his hand to his forehead.

"Stupid," He scolded himself quietly. Not because he had just stopped in the middle of a sidewalk in a bad neighborhood just as it was getting dark, but because he had left all his things back at the studio.

Corny didn't usually arrive at work in outrageously bright colored clothing. He didn't own any of the wild wardrobe, the station did. He never understood it anyway, seeing as television was broadcast only in black and white. He usually left his apartment in the mornings wearing nothing but your average shirt and pants, usually jeans. When he got to the studio he would change before practice begun.

In his haste to get away from all the people he had forgotten everything. He could envision it in his head. He saw his pants laying, folded, over the back of a chair with his shirt under it and his wallet in the pocket.

But what about…Corny gave a sigh of relief as he reached into his pocket and felt the familiar texture of his keys. He was not in the mood to go all the way back to the station, especially now that he was more than halfway home. He would have to deal with his lustrous outfit for a little while longer. It may be the sixties but the average person didn't walk down the street in a suit shiny enough to slow traffic.

Corny commenced on his trek again and started to loosen his bowtie. He figured he would be able to get home okay; after all he was almost there and…

"Hey kid, you look a little lost," a gruff voice said from behind Corny.

Corny froze in his tracks, but only hesitated for a moment. He turned around to see three rough looking men closing in behind him. Corny knew exactly what was probably about to happen to him, but he did his best to collect himself. He put on his patented grin.

"Kid? I don't think…" He laughed nervously, "I mean I'm almost-" Corny's panicky sputtering was cut off by the second man.

"Yeah, you ain't from 'round here are ya?" He questioned.

"Well actually I live right-" Corny's explanations were cut off again, but this time he was not interrupted by another voice, but by the sound of his own body being kicked into the nearby wall. In the next instant he felt one of them grab his arms and rapidly he was forced facedown on the ground with the one man still holding his arms behind his back.

"All right kid," said one of them men who was not holding him, stressing the 'kid.' "Where you keep your wallet? I don't much feel like friskin' ya."

Corny didn't answer. The unexpected bang to his chest had knocked the wind out of him. He was having enough trouble figuring out how to breathe. Talking hadn't even crossed his mind yet.

Talking suddenly went up on his list of priorities as the third man gave a hard kick to Corny's side. He had apparently waited too long to answer. As the man raised his leg to administer another blow, Corny became aware that the tight feeling in his chest had begun to lift.

"I…" He gasped out. The third man put his leg down, much to Corny's relief. The first man knelt down, putting his face inches from Corny's. The man put one of his grimy hands on Corny's chin, lifting up his face so that they were making eye contact.

"You what, boy?" The man requested menacingly.

"I…I…I forget it!" Corny finally said, the last part coming out a little too loudly. He wasn't a total idiot. He knew they would never believe he had conveniently forgotten his wallet. "I left it at work," he elaborated uselessly, almost in a whisper.

He shut his eyes and braced himself for the strike, and he was not disappointed. It stung a little as the man roughly let go of his chin causing the side of his face to scrape the ground. But it was nothing compared to what happened next, as the full force of the man's fist connected with the side of Corny's face. He felt the other man's grip tighten on his arms as he was lifted up off the sidewalk. He then soon found his face once again acquainted with the brick wall. As his body repeatedly met the wall; the edges of Corny's vision began to get hazy.

And on the fourth jolt he blacked out completely.

* * *

"What the he- ow," Corny Collins blinked his grey-blue eyes blearily as he struggled to remember exactly where he was. 

When he first tried to lift himself, he felt a pounding ache in the back of his head. His vision became hazy and for a few moments there was two of everything. After the spell had passed he decided to suck it up, and try again. He started to push himself up as quickly as possible, before he lost the nerve.

It took some effort and soon he was on his feet, but his vision swam again and he swayed; leaning against the very wall that was the cause of his discomfort. A sharp pain went up his back as he made contact with the wall. The memories of the three men flooded back into his memory. He suddenly became very nauseous. He closed his eyes, hoping the feeling would pass, but it didn't.

When he opened his eyes again he looked up at the sky, which still had the faintest traces of orange color. He noted, somewhere deep within the only small part of his brain that appeared to be functioning correctly, that he hadn't been unconscious for very long.

He coughed. His whole body ached and for a moment he wanted nothing more than to lay down right there on the sidewalk and never get up again. But then he was suddenly filled with an overwhelming desire to just go home.

He checked his pocket for his keys. They were still there. The men mustn't have seen any value in them.

He did notice how cold he was and he felt chills go through his whole body as light breeze blew down the street. They had taken his jacket. He would most likely have to reimburse the station for it.

He took a deep breath, hoping again to try and relieve the nausea, and begun to shakily make his way home.

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Sorry for the Corny abuse and the total lack of romance, but I just saw The Bourne Ultimatum, and as I started to write the chapter I realized someone was going to get their ass kicked.

Read and review!

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Please : )


	4. More Today Than Yesterday

So...I haven't died. I guess I could lie and say I was busy...Sorry for the wait.

* * *

Maybelle scanned the studio, which was deserted save for her and a few janitors in the corner.

There was a lot that needed to be done and she had decided to come into work extra early. Besides the obvious legal hurtles they would have to jump there were many other obstacles which, though less difficult, would be very time consuming. New dances, new songs, and new dance partner assignments were a few to start with. It would be difficult to accommodate all the kids on stage at once, but they would manage it.

And on that note, she had some phone calls to make too. Someone had to take care of these things. She would enlist the help of Corny and Mr. Spritzer when they arrived which usually wasn't until later in the morning.

Although she had hoped to see Corny here a little earlier, she thought he would know the importance of the situation. She was almost angry at him for a minute, but no. Since when did she know about what he thought? She liked to think of him as a good friend, though she knew almost nothing abut him personally. For instance;

What about his family?

Was there a Mrs. Collins?

Or even his first name?

Oh well, she would deal with these problems another day. There was far too much to do.

* * *

Corny groaned as he felt the oh so lovely rays of sunshine try and penetrate his eyelids. He had been in a state of half sleeping half awake for quite some time now. 

Or at least he thought so. It may have been no time at all. His thoughts were so hazy that the only thing he was entirely certain of was that he did NOT want to get up. Any emotion he could feel was pure anger.

Anger at that damn sun.

Just because it wanted to get up early didn't mean everybody had to. That is, even if it was early.

In one last ditch effort to outsmart the sunshine, Corny went to roll over, only to find himself on the floor.

He sat on the floor with a deer in the headlights look as he assessed his situation. After a few moments he deduced that he had not made it all the way to his bed last night. He had glanced to his right at his small couch where he had apparently spent the night.

Corny suddenly realized how cold it was on the floor and began the unwelcome task of getting up. He pulled himself into the sitting position and grasped on the edge of the couch.

Easy enough.

He gripped the couch and started to pull himself up. Promptly an unexpected hiss of pain escaped his lips and he fell right back down.

Oh darn. He had almost forgotten.

Again, but slower.

He was finally in a standing position, and he was none to happy about it. His joints and back would normally ache from sleeping on that couch. But do to last night's particular circumstances…

In a word.

It was _hell_.

Sighing he cracked his neck and shuffled his way over to the bathroom. Gripping the sink he stared into the mirror in order to evaluate the damage.

It could have been worse.

His area around his left eye was completely purple, and there was a pretty decent scrape that started and the bottom of his chin and went a little ways up the left side of his face.

Corny smiled weakly at his mirror self, though he wasn't sure whether it was to reassure himself or to check for missing teeth.

His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a piercing and very unwelcome sound.

The phone.

It was probably the studio wondering where in the Sam Hill he was. He really should have answered it. But he really didn't want to. His apartment only had one phone, and it was on the table, over by the couch.

He didn't answer.

Corny still wasn't sure what he was going to tell them.

He stopped leaning on the sink and stood up straight to stretch his back only to be hunched over again by an unanticipated hacking cough.

_God damnit._

* * *

Maybelle sighed as she hung up the phone. That was the fifth time she had tried to contact Mr. Collins and there was still no answer. 

She stopped writing on the form she had been filling out and closed her eyes. She really needed help with this work, and so far, no one at the station had been much relief.

She had been there since about seven o'clock that morning. On a normal day most people would arrive at about eleven to begin preparing. It was now after two o'clock, and the kids would be here soon and she was no where near done with all of the necessary work.

But where the hell was Corny Collins?!

She didn't know whether to be worried or angry. So far her frustration was winning out. After all, it was awful convenient that he would be incapacitated on this particular day.

She really thought him of all people would care about how important this is.

Maybe she was just a bad judge of character.

* * *

Meanwhile, as Corny kneeled on his bathroom floor retching into his toilet, he figured he should probably call in sick.

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Unfortunatly I can't garuntee when the next chapter will be in. I do hope you are all enjoying it! 


	5. On My Mind

Hello all! I really don't know what brought this on. I was just sitting there andsuddenly it was like Oooooo Hairspray!

* * *

It was now nearly two thirty and the kids would arrive at any minute. Maybelle had done her best to find a good stopping point in her paper work so she could leave the stuffy office she had borrowed from on of the studio employees, and greet the new council.

She had just opened the door only to come face to face with Mr. Spritzer, who had been about to knock.

"Ah, Ms. Stubbs there you are, someone told me I might find you here," he said very quickly as he pushed past her into the office.

"Actually I-"

"You're going to have to host the show alone today," he cut her off.

_What?!_

"Collins called in sick, I wish there were another option but we're really under the gun here and there's just no time."

_Awful convenient time to take a sick day_

On the other hand Maybelle was pleasantly surprised at how well Mr. Spritzer was taking all of this. Granted he looked worn out but he had most likely been dealing with press calls all day.

"Did Mr. Collins say anything else? He's just…sick?" Maybelle finally got a word in edgewise.

"I didn't have time to argue with him; personally I don't blame the guy. We could all use a sick day. He didn't sound too good anyway," he turned to leave "but I suppose anyone could fake that," he added as an afterthought as he walked away hurriedly.

_Read my mind._

* * *

It had taken more than hour for Corny to work his way up off the bathroom floor. He was amazed that he had been able to throw up for so long; he hadn't eaten anything since the morning before. Not that he wanted to eat anything now. The thought of putting anything in his mouth totally disgusted him at the moment. It didn't bother him though, he was often busy and missing meals was nothing new to Corny.

He had forced himself into the shower but his body ached way too much for him to actually get much done. It didn't make him feel any better, just wet.

He had eventually made it back to the couch.

Corny laid flat on his back with his arms behind his head. He hadn't felt particularly like drying off, so his hair was a wild mess, he also hadn't gotten around to putting on a shirt yet and he was clad only in an old comfortable pair of jeans.

His eyes were closed.

But Corny was far from asleep. He had put on some records to try and calm himself down.

The chaos that must be going on down at the station had him very stressed and excited.

But because of his current state, he was unable to express it, which he had learned the hard way when he had put the first record on and attempted a smooth dance spin, and ended up in a familiar position on the floor.

The jazz he was now listening too was the most calming thing he could find. It was simple, no words or lyrics.

As an alto saxophone solo floated through his apartment, Corny breathed deep and tried his very hardest to vanquish all thoughts from his head.

* * *

Maybelle heaved a sigh of relief as the buzzer went off signaling the end of the show for the day.

All things considered it had gone very smoothly.

She was a little disappointed with the turn out. Many of the white teenagers who were normally on the show hadn't shown up, neither had a few of the African American dancers.

Sometimes stupidity goes both ways.

She did her best not to be angry; it was mostly the fault of their parents after all.

In a way, it helped her. Now the number of kids on stage wasn't a problem. Her son had arrived first with his little sister and the Pingleton girl. Inez had run to her first chattering away all about her day at school. As Maybelle was listening, she couldn't help but let her eyes wander to where Seaweed and Penny were sharing a quick kiss before Seaweed ran off to change his clothes.

Next to arrive had been Link shortly followed by Tracy who was dropped off by her mother. After that the rest of the future cast of the Corny Collins Show filed in.

Predictably there was no sign of Amber.

_Thank God._

Maybelle began to follow the crowd of teenagers into the back so they could all change clothes and go home, until she was stopped by the sound of her name.

"Ms. Stubbs! Excuse me Ms. Stubbs!" Maybelle stopped and turned around to see on of the boom operators, signaling for her to come over.

"Yes?" She asked as she walked up to him, trying to recall his name.

_Joshua…I think._

Maybelle had never interacted much with the crew. No reason really, she just never had. Joshua was a strong tall African American, rather like her she noted, except the man part that is.

"I just wanted to say what a fine job you're doing with those kids there," Joshua grinned at her as he took down some equipment. "You're gonna make a much better host, I might actually start to enjoy my job!" He joked good naturedly.

Maybelle could have corrected him, she wasn't replacing Corny, he was just out today. The two of them had actually discussed the prospect of this happening, and they planned to co-host the show equally, even changing the show's title. But instead she smiled and shook his hand.

"Why thank you very much Joshua, and please, call me Maybelle."

* * *

Try as he might Corny could not get a particular person's face out of his head. Not that he minded thinking of Maybelle. She made him feel…good.

But he didn't want to feel good right now.

He wanted to feel nothing.

He was just considering turning up the volume of his music, when there was a loud knock on his door.

_What the…_

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As usual all reviews are much loved! I've actually some kind of plot line going in my head!


	6. Don't Be Cruel

Found a typo, I was going to ignore it but....I couldn't, I just couldn't do it!!!

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So I could lie and say I've been busy, but haven't. I have this magical thing now called a car. So now when I'm bored...I go places. ALL FEAR MY '98 FORD TAURUS!! THE LACK OF CD PLAYER ONLY MAKES IT FASTER!!!! VROOOOMMMMM!!!!!

So the first 3 paragraphs of this have been sitting in my laptop since the day after I wrote the last chapter...not quite at the one-year mark so TAKE THAT!!

* * *

Corny stretched and cracked his back as he pulled himself off the couch. He blinked away the quasi-sleep like state he had been relaxing in.

The knocking sounded again.

"I'm comin' I'm comin'," he said, more to himself then whomever had interrupted his quiet time. He shuffled his way over to the record player and turned the volume down so that it was almost inaudible. Stopping to crack his neck he leaned on the door frame while he fumbled with the locks. Even though he was wondering who could possibly be on the other side of his door, the idea did not occur him to look though the peephole first. His sleep addled brain was having enough trouble maintaining autopilot.

He ran his left hand through his hair while his other hand continued to decipher the copious amount of door locks.

When his ears caught the sound of the final click he sighed.

He rubbed his eyes as he allowed the door to creek open.

* * *

Maybelle had been in a lighthearted mood since she had left the studio after receiving flattering praises from Joshua. She normally wasn't one for flattery and pretty words, but she could get used to it.

Her light heart grew slightly heavy as her thought turned back to Mr. Collins. She wasn't angry at him, but she was disappointed which, as any punished teenager could tell you, is much, much worse. She drummed her fingers on the steering wheel of her old beat-up '55 Thunderbird, and glanced into her review mirror at her children in the back seat. Inez caught her look and smiled at her, Maybelle smiled back.

Perhaps Mr. Collins was sick.

She had never known him to call in sick to the studio, so maybe all those years of repressed sickness had caught up to him.

_Maybe I should stop by his place, just to make sure._

If he was sick she would give her regards and wish him well, and then tell him how hectic the first day of integration had gone.

And if he wasn't there would be hell to pay,

_and I don't take cash or credit._

_

* * *

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Corny's mind was still much too fuzzy to comprehend who was at his door. His eyes were seeing her just fine, but his brain was not yet connected in a way that would allow him to react.

"Hiya Mr. Collins!!"

"Oh! Uh, Tracy! I'm sorry, could you just hold on a sec? Kay, thanks!" The words spilled out of Corny's mouth all in one breathe before he slammed the door in her face. A little more harshly then he originally intended, but he paid the door no mind.

"Sure thing Mr. Collins!" Tracy chirped brightly form the other side of the door.

_Oh damn, damn, damn._

Corny tore his living room apart searching for a shirt, something to save himself. One of his council members had just seen him shirtless.

One of his _female _council members.

One of his _underage_, female, council members.

People got fired for this kind of thing; television show hosts were easily disposable.

While pulling on a white t-shirt, which he had victoriously grabbed form under the couch; he continued to curse his life.

"Mr. Collins…are you okay?"

Corny rubbed his eyes again to make sure he was fully awake. When he realized that he was indeed conscious, he opened his eyes and stared exasperatedly at the closed door. He wanted to _cry_.

Form his injuries.

From his illness.

And from his confusion.

_How does she know where I live?!_

After discovering he would win no staring contest with his door, he sighed, and opened it again.

* * *

Maybelle sighed to her self as she got ready for bed. She had already made sure the kids were out for the night. That was one advantage having them do the show. They were so exhausted in the evenings she didn't have to worry about any late night shenanigans from them.

She hadn't gone to Mr. Collins.

She had considered it seriously and thoughtfully, but only for a moment. She had tossed the idea out of the window as soon as she recalled she had her children in the car, and they didn't need to witness her murder their boss in a homicidal rage. Not tonight anyway. They had a long day.

* * *

So please review as usual, I'll get around to the next chapter if my senoritis gets bad enough. The only reason this one even got done was I had a large amount of AP Government work to do, which I still have yet to start.

I also play more video games and party with friends more than I used to. It's my senior year!!!! DON'T JUDGE ME.


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